May-June 2009 Selected Content

One of the great things about having an unschooled teen or young adult is they are always surprising you with interesting ideas and new paths in life. My mid-twenties, mostly-unschooled daughter recently returned from seven months in Central America which included two volunteer positions in Guatemala--one at an orphanage in the jungle and one at an arts center in a highland Mayan village. I visited her there for two weeks, spending one week traveling and one week teaching ballet at the arts center with her. Travel in another country is inherently educational, and there were many times I felt my experiences as a longtime unschooling mom allowed me to view things in a different way.

From my daughter's description, the first place she worked had the same compartmentalized view of life that much of western society suffers from. While clearly doing good work and offering an improved life to the children there, those at the orphanage did not see learning as a natural aspect of living but as the children's "job"--and the teacher's job was to make them do it! Homeschoolers, and especially unschoolers, will recognize that only a small percentage of kids are likely to thrive in that environment--especially with the added trauma of being orphaned and relocated to an unfamiliar area. (The orphanage is in a remote jungle; the children mainly from various urban areas including Guatemala City). My daughter found herself in a difficult situation--attached to the kids but at odds with the philosophy of the institution.

Her second position was a much better fit. La Cambalacha, an arts center in the Guatemalan Highlands, is filled with colorful paintings, homemade art projects, play areas, a dance studio stocked with music and instruments, a big garden, hand-built volunteer quarters, traditional outdoor laundry, kitchen, and eating areas, all woven together in a living complex where the kids and staff obviously feel at home. The family atmosphere is enhanced by the director's family quarters being on site (complete with four year old) and several of the staff's children and grandchildren accompanying them, as well as a couple of student parents with babies.

The students are organized into four groups, by age and level of involvement. The older kids assist with the younger classes, and groups also go out each week to surrounding village schools and lead arts workshops there. The regular Guatemalan school system is very regimented and seems based largely on rote memorization. Most schools offer no arts program at all, and the three I saw had bare walls, no books in sight, with kids sitting at desks repeating after the teacher. On one day, I got to accompany a group of about fifteen teens and young adult volunteers from La Cambalacha who were leading workshops in a neighboring village. The two hosting schools and their students seemed very happy to have them, and the La Cambalacha kids were confident and able group leaders.

While these students are not homeschoolers, the arts center clearly holds views about learning and life that will feel very familiar to much of the American unschooling community. Homeschoolers have learned a lot about integrating life and learning, empowerment, individuality, creativity, community, self-directed learning, and faith in their own choices. These concepts are very relevant to people in developing countries as opportunities expand and a variety of paths open up to them. The strength to value their own personal choices and their own culture's assets could be key factors in their ability to retain their culture as they fully participate in the world market and globalization.

Homeschoolers have decades of experience in saying "no thanks" to experts who want to dictate our choices, and in saying "thanks, that's helpful" to anything we actually find useful, no matter the source. This would be a valuable attitude to spread worldwide.

I personally got a lesson in international and multicultural exchange at La Cambalacha, where my daughter was the only American volunteer for the bulk of her stay. Most of the young adults that make up the volunteer corps there are from Europe and South America.

As I passed my week there teaching dance classes and getting to know some of the volunteer staff and students, I was impressed with how comfortable their generation is with people from multiple countries and cultures. It was also a valuable experience for me to be "at the mercy" of translators (my daughter and others) and encouraged me to re-think many of the teaching techniques I've used over the years in my dance classes. While the older kids at the Center were all at least bi-lingual (with Spanish as their second language) some of the younger ones were still learning Spanish and conversed in their native tongue--one of over 20 Mayan languages spoken in Guatemala. This meant class with the younger students required double translation for anything I was trying to teach in English! Never have I lamented more my multiple unsuccessful attempts to learn Spanish, all in academic settings. In this homey atmosphere, I felt for the first time it might actually be possible for me to learn in a more natural way enough Spanish to at least get by.

Planning Your Own Trip to Central America

Central America is a great place to travel to learn Spanish. Guatemala alone has scores of inexpensive language schools, with the beautiful colonial city of Antigua being a main center. Most emphasize immersion-style, one-on-one instruction, with extras offered like home stays with local families, group outings to historic and cultural sites, lessons in crafts, cooking, and other activities. If you already know Spanish or if combining learning and working appeals to you, there are many opportunities for volunteer work for teens and adults and sometimes even younger family members.

If your family or older homeschooler is considering a trip to Central America, do some research and reading before picking a country to visit. I fell in love with Guatemala partly for its amazing textiles, beautiful scenery, and mild mountain weather, but my daughter also recommends El Salvador or Panama, and others swear by Costa Rica or Nicaragua. Each country has its own flavor and having an existing interest in something your host country is known for is a great door-opener, whether it's architecture, wildlife, or the arts.

Note that even if you stay at a volunteer work site and work full time, you will likely be expected to pay for room and board. These are developing countries and count on income from visitors to keep the local economy going. Basic accommodations can be very inexpensive as long as you do not expect American style quarters. We stayed in very simple rooms with a shared bathroom for between $7 and $15 per night for two of us. The most expensive room had a shared kitchen as well, and sometimes even warm water in the shower! It's best to leave your preconceived ideas of a motel/dorm/hostel at home and think "camping out" instead. Of course, fancier lodgings are possible in some locations, especially larger cities and tourist areas. There are also an increasing number of eco-resorts; we spent one night at an avocado farm in a tree house!

The Lonely Planet guidebooks are reliable, comprehensive and down to earth. They have a general one on Central America and separate ones on individual countries. Also recommended are: The Thorn Tree Forum, a blog on the Lonely Planet website (www.lonelyplanet.com) with specific travel info from current and recent visitors, and the websites www.virtualtourist.com and www.worldtravelguide.com

For background reading before your trip, a general history of Central America for adults and  older teens, with emphasis on US involvement there, is "Inevitable Revolutions: The United States in Central America" by Walter LaFeber.

For visitors to Guatemala, youngsters will enjoy "Guatemala ABCs" by Marcie Aboff and "Abuelo's Weave" by Omar Castaneda. "Teenage Refugees from Guatemala Speak Out" by Gerry Hadden and "I, Rigoberta Menchu", an autobiography by the Guatemalan Nobel Peace Prize winner will be interesting to teens and parents (note there are some descriptions of torture). A general history of the culture is "The Maya" by Michael Cole, and anyone interested in textiles will want to look at "Guatemalan Rainbow" by Gianni Vecchiato.

To learn more about La Cambalacha, to donate to their wonderful arts program, or to inquire about volunteering there see www.LaCambalacha.org. Be sure to check out their "Fotoshow".

If an actual trip is not in your immediate plans, it's still fun and educational to learn, dream, and plan a trip for the future. You can do this on the internet and/or with books, and also be sure to check out the possibilities of events in your hometown sponsored by or geared to local immigrant communities.

On my recent trip to visit family in California, I took advantage of being in a highly multicultural area to eat at a Thai food fair and attend performances of traditional dance from The Philippines, India, Brazil, China and Haiti. Many American towns and cities have immigrant communities large enough to host annual events which can be your window into a foreign country or even, with some initiative, a way to make connections toward a future journey abroad.

© 2009, Stacy Gleason